1814, September 18 (Appeal to the British Nation): In his royal manifesto, King Henry Christophe directs a specific appeal to the British nation, praising it…

1814, September 18 (Appeal to the British Nation): In his royal manifesto, King Henry Christophe directs a specific appeal to the British nation, praising it for being the first to proclaim the abolition of the “infamous traffic in Negroes” within its august Senate. He acknowledges Great Britain’s use of its “ascendancy of victory” to recommend abolition to all other states through diplomatic alliances. The King asks the philanthropists of all nations and the universe at large if any people, after twenty-five years of battle and bloodshed, would ever consent to lay down their arms and become victims of their oppressors again. He declares that the last of the Haytians will “breathe out his last sigh” before renouncing their hard-won independence. This appeal sought to align Haytian interests with the rising tide of British abolitionism to gain a powerful European ally.